Oil prices are higher after the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh
Futures tied to the Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) are eyeing a triple-digit pop this morning amid a chip sector rally, while Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) futures are firmly higher as well. Private payrolls data is boosting optimism, after job growth for June came in below analysts' estimates, indicating the economy is slower.
The cooler-than-expected jobs data comes before the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision at the conclusion of its two-day monetary policy meeting later today, with rates expected to be unchanged. In other news, oil prices are surging after the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.4 million call contracts and 959,946 put contracts traded on Tuesday. The single-session equity put/call rose to 0.68, while the 21-day moving average remained at 0.66.
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Boeing Co (NYSE:BA) today revealed Robert “Kelly” Ortberg, formerly of Collins Aerospace which later became RTX (RTX), will
replace CEO Dave Calhoun
in the wake of the company's
multiple scandals. BA is up 1.6% in premarket trading, but carries a 28.3% year-to-date deficit.
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Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) stock is up 0.5% ahead of the open, brushing off comments from CEO Ed Bastian that the CrowdStrike (CRWD) software update that resulted in a global IT outage cost the company
$500 million, with over 4,000 flights cancelled. DAL is still up 7.5% this year.
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Semiconductor stocks are in rally mode today, with
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) leading the charge. AMD is up 7.5% before the bell on strong second-quarter earnings and reports that export restrictions on China will be less aggressive than previously anticipated. AMD added 21% in the last 12 months.
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Asian Markets Higher After Japan Rate Hike
Asian markets finished firmly higher across the board on Wednesday. Japan’s Nikkei rose 1.5%, reversing its earlier losses after the country’s central bank raised interest rates to around 0.25%, marking the first time since 2008 that the benchmark interest rate is above 0.1%. China’s Shanghai Composite tacked on 2.1%, after China’s factory activity contracted slightly in July, with the manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) reading of 49.4 falling 0.1 from the previous month but beating estimates of 49.3. Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 2%, while the South Korean Kospi added 1.2%.
European bourses are higher at last look as well, after the euro zone inflation reading rose to 2.6% in July from 2.5% in June. London’s FTSE 100 is up 1.2%, while the French CAC 40 and German DAX rise 1.1% and 0.5%, respectively.